A Philadelphia Eagles fan’s former employers spoke out against some of the reaction the company received over the man’s incident with a pair of Green Bay Packers fans over the weekend.
Lawrence Hibbert and Dr. Randal Pinkett, the co-founders of the DEI-focused BCT Partners in New Jersey, spoke to TMZ Sports and defended their company over negative social media posts and reviews that were left online in the wake of the incident.
"Some of the posts, some of the comments that have been made about our company are as vile if not more vile than the comments made about (Ryan Caldwell). That’s the point, right?" Pinkett said. "That’s the problem with the culture that we’ve created in which we find ourselves, is that there’s no room for grace. There’s no room, there’s just two extremes, either you’re OK or you are canceled.
"We believe there’s a middle ground that we can recover from mistakes, we can learn and we can grow. We believe that Mr. Caldwell can learn and grow, but we believe that our society can also learn and grow. That we can criticize the behavior, we can condemn the behavior without condemning the individual."
Hibbert lamented the last few days, given that the company is in the process of celebrating an important milestone.
"This has been a really difficult time over the last 24-48 hours," Hibbert said, adding that the company is celebrating its 25th anniversary. "… And when you get social media posts and national media questioning your integrity and how your do work, it hurts. But we also believe we can stand on our track record and we wanted to take these opportunities to affirm that even in the difficult times we’re gonna operate on our value system, doing what we believe is right."
The fan was identified as Ryan Caldwell, and the company announced it had parted ways with him on Tuesday. Pinkett said they knew it was Caldwell from the video.
"I can't say enough about how abhorrent the behavior that we observed was and how upset I was in seeing someone who was at the time associated with our company displaying that kind of behavior," he said.
Caldwell was seen berating a female Packers fan while her fiancé recorded the incident. He called her a "dumb c---" and a "c---" repeatedly.
"While attending an NFL game last Sunday to support my beloved Philadelphia Eagles, an incident occurred that I deeply regret," he said. "What began as banter with two Packers fans sitting near me escalated to something more serious, and I said things that were unacceptable. In the heat of the moment, I chose unforgiving words to address one of the fans,
"Ms. Ally Keller. I want to sincerely apologize to Ms. Keller for those words, and to my wife, family, and friends, my former employer and colleagues, Packer fans, Eagle fans, the Philadelphia Eagles, the City of Philadelphia, and all who were offended. That said, there are two sides to every story.
"The video clip circulating online does not reflect the full context of what transpired, and my actions were not without provocation. I will live with this experience, and I am certainly paying a personal price. For those who don’t know me, this incident does not reflect my values or the respect I have for others and is not indicative of the person I am."
The couple were on a beach right at the water, all alone with an umbrella, roses and a blanket to celebrate the occasion.
Both attended the University of North Carolina, and they celebrated their nine-year dating anniversary this past October.
The New England Patriots took Maye with the third overall selection, and after early struggles, he looked much better as he continued to get action on the gridiron.
Initially starting the season as the backup to Jacoby Brissett, he became the starter in Week 6 and finished with 2,276 passing yards on a 66.6 completion percentage in his dozen starts. He threw 15 touchdowns against 10 interceptions while gaining another 421 yards on the ground and rushing for two scores.
Maye is not the only quarterback in the AFC East to get engaged recently.
Josh Allen of the Buffalo Bills put a ring on musician Hailie Steinfeld’s finger.
The engagement is certainly a nice break from the recent drama in Pats land - after New England’s season finale, the team fired first-year head coach Jerod Mayo, a move that has been heavily criticized by ex-Patriots.
However, earlier this week, they made the unsurprising move and hired Mike Vrabel, who was available to be hired last offseason, as well.
Hopefully, for Pats fans, Vrabel can help Maye get his second ring - the next one being for a Super Bowl.
The NFL and federal law enforcement are increasing security for Super Bowl LIX in New Orleans in response to the New Year's Day terrorist attack on Bourbon Street that killed 14 people, officials told ESPN.
